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About us

Mandate

Our mandate is to support the industry in their endeavours to ensure responsible alcohol service is aligned with public safety for the good of our communities. We continue in our efforts to ensure that the message of responsible alcohol consumption is understood by the broader public including university and college students. Through education, state-of-the-art training, open dialogue and strategic partnerships, our primary goal is to be an active participant in helping to change the culture and behaviour of all who engage in the sale, service and consumption of beverage alcohol.

 

 

Mission

The following Mission Statement was developed for Smart Serve Ontario:

We are the leader in responsible and affordable beverage alcohol training and certification for a safer, healthier Ontario.

Vision

The following Vision was developed for Smart Serve Ontario:

To be recognized as the leading responsible Beverage Alcohol Service Training Provider.

Values

The following Values support all the programs, decision-making and initiatives of Smart Serve Ontario.

CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVE

We are on a mission to consistently improve the experience of our stakeholders.

ENCOURAGE DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

We know that individuals from different backgrounds create a strong team.  Different backgrounds and diverse thoughts are welcomed and new ideas are encouraged.

COLLABORATE EFFECTIVELY

We treasure and nurture the strong bonds we have with our stakeholders.  We leverage those relationships to support our success.

ACCEPT ACCOUNTABILITY

We take personal responsibility for our commitments.

Senior Team

Richard Anderson
Executive Director

Vickie Lane
Executive Assistant

Rob Doiron
Director of IT

Ellie Johnson
Operations Manager

Zach Rychlik
Program and Marketing Manager

Phoebe (Thanh) Tran
Marketing Specialist

Alex von Niebelschutz
Financial Administrator

Our senior team can be reached at info@smartserve.ca 

Smart Serve Ontario Board of Directors

Executive Members

Mary D’Alton
Board Chair

Miss D’Alton has served in many leadership roles, including Chair of the Ontario Hotel and Restaurant Association, Chair of the Greater KW Chamber of Commerce, Chair of the OSSA now the WSPS (Workplace Safety Prevention Services) and Vice-Chair of the Board of Governors Wilfrid Laurier University.

Members

David A. Levin
Food and Beverage Consultant, DAL Hospitality

David A. Levin is a highly respected food and beverage consultant and former hotel operator at the national level. He is the Food and Beverage Consultant at DAL Hospitality, a company that assists its clients with operational and financial evaluations, RFP’s, contract negotiations, strategic planning, recruitment, concept development, benchmarking/best practices, ROI, development of custom software applications and a variety of specialized services in the foodservice and hospitality industries.

David Thompson
Global Operations Executive, C-Suite Business Leader

David is a decisive and multi-faceted C-level leader with over 30 years of experience in numerous sectors. David has held many senior roles including CEO Advisor, President, Strand Realty Company, and Mayor of the Town of Deep River.

Fred Luk
Restaurant Hospitality Consultant

As a leader in the hospitality industry and professional restaurateur, Fred has over 35 years of hospitality experience as owner of some of Toronto’s most popular restaurants. Fred has served on the Toronto Branding Committee for Tourism Toronto, Toronto03 Alliance, OTMP City Product committee, City of Toronto’s Winterlicious/Summerlicious program, and as President of the Ontario Restaurant Association.

Gyan Chandra
Advisory Board of Overbond, Member of the Board for John Howard Society of Ontario, Treasurer of John Howard Society of York Region, Member of the Public Advisory Council of ICES

Gyan is a strong proponent for education. As Vice President and Account General Manager, Gyan leads one of DXC’s largest and most strategic client relationships. He is responsible for revenue, profit, satisfaction, risk management, innovation, and operations. His focus is to drive technology enabled business change in support of client strategy and objectives.

Jody Palubiski
CEO/Partner
Charcoal Group of Restaurants

Jody has over 35-years of hospitality experience and currently leads a team of over 1000 incredible hospitality professionals. He oversees and drives all facets of the company’s growth and development. Jody’s vision is present in all details of each restaurant’s décor, cuisine,
branding, systems, service style, and culture. The Charcoal Group was recognized as the 2019 Independent Restaurateur of the Year for Canada at Foodservice & Hospitality’s annual Pinnacle Awards.

Julie Nolte
CPA, CA, CMA

Julie Nolte has been in the Ontario gaming industry for over 25 years and has held various senior management roles in land-based gaming as well as working with prospective Operators and Gaming-Related Suppliers for entrance into the Regulated iGaming Ontario market. Julie worked in various areas of the land-based casino operations including Casino Controller, Executive Director of Slots and Cashiering Operations and Vice President Compliance. Julie is a Chartered Professional Accountant and obtained her previous designations of Chartered Accountant and Certified Management Accountant while working at CA firms such as KPMG and BDO. Julie currently runs her gaming compliance consulting company – JN Gaming Compliance Solutions Inc.

Maria Allan

Maria Allan is an accomplished senior sales professional with extensive leadership experience in Beverage Alcohol and CPG industries. She is multilingual with a proven ability to inspire and engage high performing cross-functional teams. She spent three years as Country Manager of Constellation brands and prior to that, 16 years as sales director Eastern Canada for Jackson Family wines. Two years prior she was with CVBG Dourthe -Kressman as their Export Director for Canada. She has additional experience in senior sales and marketing roles with Kellogg’s, T.J. Lipton and Pillsbury and Lever Bros. Maria has extensive wine training, to Kalon Master Certification in 2018, along with Court of Master Sommeliers Accreditation in 2005.

Steve Monuk
Partner, OttawaVenues
Vice-Chairman, Byward Market BIA

Steve is a partner of Ottawavenues, which owns and operates Ottawa’s finest restaurants, bars, nightclubs, entertainment and special event venues in the Nation’s Capital.  He is the Vice-Chairman of the Byward Market BIA, Chair of the Byward Market Safety and Security Committee, Member of the Lowertown Community Association, board member of Crime Prevention Ottawa, Chair of the Ottawa Coalition of BIA’s, Board member of Safer Ottawa Drinking Alliance and Chair of Canoe for Kids – Christie Lake Kids. Steve is also the proud recipient of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, awarded to honour significant contributions and achievements by Canadians.

Tom Pazianos
Partner, Caribou Restaurant + Wine Bar

Tom Pazianos is from Thunder Bay and brings many years of operational experience in the restaurant industry in Northern Ontario. As an entrepreneur and business owner, Tom is an active partner in Caribou Restaurant + Wine Bar and former Manager/Partner of The Keg Steakhouse & Bar in Thunder Bay.

Our board members can be reached at board@smartserve.ca 

Scholarships and Bursaries

Smart Serve Ontario proudly supports education in hospitality and tourism management throughout the Province of Ontario. To demonstrate this support, we have provided contributions to scholarship funds at the following colleges and universities in the Province of Ontario:

  • Algonquin College
  • Canadore College
  • Centennial College
  • Conestoga College
  • Confederation College
  • Durham College
  • Fanshawe College
  • Fleming College
  • George Brown College
  • Georgian College
  • Humber College
  • La Cité collégiale
  • Lambton College
  • Loyalist College
  • Niagara College
  • Seneca College
  • St. Clair College
  • St. Lawrence College
  • Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University)
  • University of Guelph

Stakeholder Relations

Smart Serve is pleased to partner with the following associations in their efforts in promoting responsible service and consumption of alcohol for a safer and healthier Ontario:

  • arrive alive DRIVE SOBER
  • Association of Municipalities Ontario (AMO)
  • Festival & Events Ontario
  • Greater Toronto Hotel Association
  • Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP)
  • Ontario Restaurant Hotel & Motel Association (ORHMA)
  • Resorts of Ontario
  • Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA)
  • Tourism Industry Association of Ontario (TIAO)